William Pryor: “the names Ernest Green, Elizabeth Eckford, Gloria Ray Karlmark, Carlotta Walls LaNier, Minnijean Brown Trickey, Terrence…”

“the names Ernest Green, Elizabeth Eckford, Gloria Ray Karlmark, Carlotta Walls LaNier, Minnijean Brown Trickey, Terrence Roberts, Jefferson Thomas, Thelma Mothershed Wair, Melba Pattillo Beals are part of Arkansas history and part of America's history. When I talked to the so-called Little Rock Nine about the fact that we were able to secure funding for the visitors center, Minnijean Brown Trickey said it was an affirmation of a very beautiful and tragic story. I think she captured it. The story of Little Rock Central High School in 1957 is a story of courage, of hardship, of justice, faith, tradition, power, opportunity, and leadership. I think that is why the story is so powerful, because it connects so many of those things all in one event or one series of events. It has all of those elements, but there is also more to the story. The ``more to the story'' part is what I wanted to talk about today. We are here to talk about the events in 1957, to talk about the very painful but ultimately successful integration of a large public high school in a Southern city.”